『 and 』
by Insensatus
Summary: Sora, an 18 year old NEET-virgin who is obsessed with games has never met Shiro, an 11 year old NEET who never goes to school. They both have never lost in any games, ever... until they meet one another.
1. 『Prologue』

**『Prologue』**

_A crappy game._

That's what 18 year old game-obsessed Sora, a virgin and a NEET thought of the world.

_There's no way to know the rules or the goal, yet there are 7 billion players making whatever moves they want. If you lose too much, or win too much, there are penalties. You can't pass your turn, and if you talk too much, you'll be ostracized. There are no parameters and no way to even know the genre. This world is just… a crappy game._

He clicked away at an MMORPG game, controlling four accounts with his hands and feet. After defeating another horde of players, he took a bite out of a hunk of white bread. _The human brain can function as long as it has glucose. White bread is best, in terms of cost-performance._

He glanced at the clock, which read 8:00 AM. A few minutes later, a "ping" disrupted the silence of Sora's room. Sora opened the mail app on his iPad.

**『 』**

**Sender: unknown**

**Have you ever felt like you were born in the wrong world?**

_How did he know 『 』 __was one person? Well, it might be fun to see where this goes. _

Sora clicked the hyperlink, and was directed to a chess game. He grinned, 『 』never loses. _Chess is a finite two player game, zero sum and perfect information game. Luck has no part in it. Theoretically, there is a perfect solution that will never lose._

It seemed like he was playing a computer program at first, but after a few manipulative moves, it became clear he was playing a human. Even if he wasn't able to understand the 10^120 possible states of the board, using his bluffs and manipulative strategies, there was no way he could lose.

**IT IS DRAW!**

It had been ten rounds already, and each one ended in a draw. Five of them ended in stalemates, four of them due to threefold repetition, and one due to the fifty-rule move.

It was impossible. 『 』always won.

* * *

><p><span>Thank you so much for reading, and please review! I enjoyed writing this, and it gave me an excuse to rewatch the anime!<span>  
><span>No Game No Life is definitely my favorite anime as of now... The character's personalities may be slightly different, and the reasons why will be explained... later.<span>


	2. 『Beginner』

**『Beginner』**

Sora received another mail.

**『 』**

**Sender: unknown**

**Well done.**

**If you're that good at games…**

** The world must be a tough game for you to live, right? **

**What do you think about your world? **

**Is it fun? **

**Is it easy to live in?**

**If there was a world where simple games decided everything…**

**a world on a board,**

**where the rules and goal were clear,**

**what would you think about that?**

Sora laughed to himself. He started to type, interacting with someone for the first time in years.

**Re: 『 』**

**Sender: 『 』 **

**If there's a world like that, then I was born in the wrong world. **

Sora hit send. Suddenly, there was a flash, as if the world's energy supply just ran out. All of his screens displayed static. He stood up, alarmed. _What's going on? _

"I think so too!" a young boy's voice called out in the darkness. "You were definitely born in the wrong world!" Two hands stretched out from the main screen. Sora gasped. "So I'll let you be reborn! In the world you should've been born in!"

Everything turned white.

"Welcome to my world!" Sora was falling, his many electronics scattered around in the sky.

"What is this?" he shouted in terror, arms stretched out in a free fall to the ground. Surprised, he looked around. He had just heard a girl's voice scream in the same way he did. There, a young girl with light lavender hair was falling too.

"This is the ideal world you've always dreamed of. The world on a game board: Disboard!"

Sora shifted, trying to reach the girl.

"Everything in this world is decided by simple games. People's lives…even national borders!"

"Who are you?" the girl asked in a quiet voice.

"Me?" the strange boy asked. "I'm Tet. I live over there." He pointed at a king chess piece in the distance. "A god?"

"A god?" the girl repeated, tears falling out of her eyes. Sora finally caught the girl, her long, soft hair brushing against his cheek.

"Now's not the time! What do we do about this?!" Sora shrieked.

Tet ignored him. "In this world, everything is decided by ten pledges.

One: All murder, war, and robbery is forbidden in this world.

Two: All conflict in this world will be resolved through games.

Three: In games, each player will bet something that they agree is of equal value.

Four: As long as it doesn't go against number three, what they bet and the rules of the game will not be questioned.

Five: The challenged party has the right to decide the rules of the game.

Six: Any bets made in accordance with the pledges must be upheld.

Seven: Conflicts between groups will be conducted by designated representatives with absolute authority.

Eight: Being caught cheating during a game in grounds for an instant loss.

Nine: In the name of God, the previous rules may never be changed."

"I said, this is not the time! The ground! The ground's getting close!"

The girl whimpered. Sora protectively changed positions so that his body would shield hers.

There was a loud crash. Dust rose in a large cloud from the ground. Sora and the girl were laying in a small crater, floating an inch above the ground. They dropped with a small thud, along with their electronics.

Tet walked over, looking down on them with his strangely multi-colored eyes.

"And ten: Let's all have fun and play together!"

"Hey!" Sora demanded.

Tet disappeared, his voice echoing. "I look forward to seeing you again. I don't think it'll be long…"

The girl stood up. "Who are you?" she asked. "Where are we?"

Before Sora could answer, a creature that looked like a dragon flew past them, causing little rocks to fly into the canyon below.

"I'm Sora. I've always thought that life was an impossible game. A game for masochists. But… It's finally bugged out!" Sora wailed.

"What's going on?" the girl had tears streaming down her face too.

"This game is total crap!" they cried in unison.

"Long ago, in the distant, distant past, the gods, along with their families and creations, waged an eternal war for the right to rule the world, the right to be the One True God. The long, brutal battle came to a swift end without a victor with the death of the sky, the sea, the land, and the stars. The single deity who had not participated in the battle won by default and assumed the title of One True God. His name was Tet. He was once known as the "god of play". In the face of their shattered world, excuses were meaningless. And then, God spoke. 'All murder, war, and robbery is forbidden in this world,' he said…" a large man was saying. "…and prove to me that you have wisdom after all!"

"I see," Sora said, dully typing on his smartphone. "So that's why there's a world where everything is decided by games, according to ten pledges."

"Yes. And by the way…"

"What?"

"Do you suppose you could leave us with a pair of pants?" Three nearly naked men were crouching on the ground.

Sora scrolled up on his smartphone. "Six: Any bets made in accordance with the pledges must be upheld," he read. "I bet everything I could offer, including my life, and you bet everything you owned. Right?"

"That's right, but… you can't leave us here like this!" the man complained.

"Let's go, Shiro." Sora said to the girl. She cautiously followed, still not trusting Sora.

"Wait! Kid!" the men yelled. "At least let me punch you once!"

"Looks like even thieves can't rob or kill you," Sora remarked.

"Even if they want to, they probably can't," Shiro said.

"In other words… It all comes down to your skill at the game."


	3. 『New World』

**『****New World』**

After arriving in the capital of Elkia, Sora and Shiro discovered that the next king of Elkia would be determined by a gambling tournament.

"So even the king is decided by a game," Sora said.

The blonde woman gestured toward a table. "The red-haired girl is Stephanie Dola. She's the granddaughter of the last king, but, because of his will, she can't inherit the throne. So she's entered the gambling tournament."

Shiro, who was leaning on a wall, slowly slid down. "Shiro, are you okay?" Sora asked, stretching out his arms to help.

She quickly straightened. "I'm fine," she said, stepping to the side to avoid Sora's touch. Sora had lost faith in humanity, but this girl was different. He stared at a bag of coins, shimmering in the fading sunlight.

"What? Falling in love with me?" the blonde woman teased, a playful smile on her lips.

"No, I was just wondering if you were going to enter."

"Me? This is all I need." The woman pointed to the bag overflowing with golden coins. "And… that Kurami girl is so strong that most of the other players withdrew."

"In other words, you're scared?" Sora taunted.

"What?" the woman demanded.

"Well, as long as you don't actually lose here, you can make up any number of excuses later. 'I actually won, but I let her go,' for example."

"Hmm?" the woman challenged. "Interesting. Want to play, _boy_?"

"Sorry, but I don't play for fun. Bet all that money."

"What?! Do you know how much is in here? We have to bet something we both agree is equal, or it isn't a game," the woman complained, protectively holding the bag of money.

"Pledge three, was it? Fair enough…" Sora looked at Shiro, pleading with his eyes to trust him. Shiro didn't answer, only staring back with her golden-red eyes. "How about you can do whatever you want with the two of us? Sell us, abandon us, whatever you want." Shiro's eyes widened in surprise.

"Are you serious?"

"We're serious," Sora said. The woman gasped.

"We'll play a single hand of poker. What do you say? This is your last chance to quit." Sora's red eyes glittered in anticipation.

"Don't get cocky, outsider." The woman's hand twitched on the bag of money. "I'll do it." She raised her hand. "I swear by the pledges." Sora raised his hand. "I swear by the pledges."

"Aschente!" they yelled.

The woman started dealing cards, lightning fast. For her last card, she took a card she hid under her palm. _Just a stupid kid from the backwoods with more confidence than anything. _The woman thought, a smile on her purple lips again. _That bluff might work in your little village, but it won't work here!_

Using a slight of hand method, the woman expertly exchanged another card in her hand with another card under her palm.

"Sora…" Shiro said.

Sora sighed, and folded.

"Bad luck, huh?" the woman asked, smirking. "Poor thing."

"Yeah. I started the day with a 10,000 meter skydive, then walked forever under the blazing sun. Definitely a bad day."

"What are you talking about?"

"Nothing," he said nonchalantly. "You ready?"

She laughed. "I'm ready. I'll let you exchange cards once more, if you want."

"No, thanks."

"Oh? Then… Sorry, boy! Full house!"

Sora remained expressionless. "Oh, yeah. 'Sorry' is right." He placed his cards on the table to reveal a royal straight flush.

"Ro… Royal… S-Straight… F-F-Flush?! Impossible! There's only a 1 in 6,150,000 chance…"

"And that's what just happened," Sora said, walking away with the bag of coins.

"That was cheating. Really obvious cheating, too." Shiro was stunned by Sora's ability to cheat in such a manner without being noticed.

"Pledge eight: Being caught cheating during a game in grounds for an instant loss. In other words, if you're not caught, it's fine."

"How much is in there?"

"No idea." He tossed the bag up in the air. "Just leave it to me. Negotiations are my specialty."

Sora's negotiation skills saved them 3 coins in the inn's room pricing. Shiro was taking photos of the gambling tournament when Sora noticed Kurami's hand. It was comprised of only 10's of hearts.

"She's cheating?"

"No doubt about it. But… I can't tell how."

Sora looked to the corner of the in to find a girl, her hood covering her whole face. "I see… I can't believe it, but this world…" he chuckled without humor. "Seriously?"

"What will you do? Fold?" Kurami was asking.

"Sh-Shut up!" Stephanie Dola cried nervously.

Sora leaned over. "She's cheating." Sora and Shiro left to their two-bed room. Kurami's eyes followed them suspiciously.

"Smartphones. DSPs. Tablet. Battery and solar charger. Cables…" Sora counted the electronics that had fallen down with him.

"Is this all you have?" Shiro asked, looking at her pile of electronics.

"Well, after what happened, maybe we're lucky we've still got this much."

"I can't get a signal," Shiro stated, walking around with her phone in her hand.

"I'm sure. This is a true fantasy world. The way she was cheating… Seriously, there's gotta be a limit."

Shiro walked to Sora's side of the room. "Can you beat that?"

Sora didn't reply, facing out the window.

Shiro's eyes widened. "Sorry. It was a stupid question," she said quietly.

"Hey, Shiro. Usually, in a story, when the protagonists end up in another world, they try their bets to find a way home, right?" He paused, staring intently at the strangely colorful scenery. "Why would they try to go back to a world like that?" he said, almost a whisper.

He turned, and found Shiro curled up on her bed, eyes closed. She was smiling for the first he met her.

As Sora gently pulled a blanket over her, she spoke.

"I think so too…"


	4. 『Stephanie Dola』

**『****Stephanie Dola』**

_A perfect, flawless beauty._ Sora thought, staring at Shiro. He shook his head, trying to clear his mind of such thoughts. _Humans are disgusting creatures, stupid and weak. _But for the first time since he had conscious thoughts, he wasn't sure about his opinion.

A light knocking on the door disrupted Sora's thoughts.

"Who's there? I paid up front-" He opened the door to reveal a young woman, tightly clutching a blanket to hide her body.

"Can I come in?" she asked.

"Shiro?" Sora asked, lightly nudging the sleeping girl.

She rubbed her eyes sleepily. "I have my own bed," she murmured, half awake.

Sora's brow furrowed in confusion. "What?" He was about to ask more, but was interrupted by Stephanie Dola.

"What was that all about?" she asked, evidently embarrassed.

"What do you mean?"

"If you knew she was cheating, why didn't you tell me what she was doing?" she demanded. "I could've won if you had!"

"Pledge eight: Being caught cheating during a game in grounds for an instant loss. Right?"

"That's right. And thanks to you, I lost! I lose my chance to become king, and everything is over!" The red-haired girl had tears in her eyes.

"In other words…" Sora said. "You're mad that you lost, so you're taking it out on us?"

Stephanie flinched. _She fell for it. _Sora lowered his face so that Stephanie wouldn't see his sly grin.

"You couldn't even figure out a simple trick like that, so you lost everything you owned and now you're taking it out on us? What a joke," Sora taunted, an arrogant tone in his voice. Shiro sat up on her bed, now interested in where Sora was taking this conversation.

"What?" Stephanie yelled, standing up from her chair.

"And when someone calls you on it, you blow up in rage at every little thing. You're simple-minded. Easily riled. You can't control your emotions, and you're too conservative to take risks. To be blunt, you never had a chance." Sora said these words easily, letting the bitter emotions of his past seep into every word. "If it's the _foolish king's_ blood in you, it's no wonder you lose all the time."

Stephanie Dola looked like she was stabbed. "Take that back," she whispered, her hands quivering in rage. "Say what you want about me, but I won't let you insult my grandfather! You take that back this instant!"

Sora's cold, red eyes looked at Stephanie in mock sympathy. "If you're getting mad, that means I'm right again. Obviously the granddaughter of a _foolish king_."

"You think I'm going to put up with this?!" Stephanie raised her hand, ready to slap Sora.

A clap echoed through the walls. "Then let's play a game."

"A game?" Stephanie's hand was still raised, frozen in surprise.

"Yup. 'All conflict … will be resolved through games.' That's the rule in this world, right? So let's play rock-paper-scissors."

She lowered her hand. "Rock-paper-scissors?"

"Yup. But… I'll only play paper. If I play anything besides paper, I lose." Sora explained the rules of the modified game.

"So what are we betting?"

"If you win, I'll comply with your every demand. I'll tell you how she cheated, and if you don't like the fact that I called your _foolish grandfather _a fool, then you can tell me to die."

Stephanie gasped. He continued. "And if I win, you'll comply to my every demand. I'm risking my life for a game of rock-paper-scissors. You understand, right?"

"And if we tie?" Stephanie's eyes narrowed.

"I'll give you a hint about how she cheated. In exchange, you can do me a small favor. To be honest, once we use all of this, we've got no means to get food or a place to stay." He help up the bag of coins.

"You want me to give you a place to stay?" Stephanie asked.

Sora stuck his tongue out. There was a barely audible noise that came from Shiro. She came to sit closer to Sora.

"Understood."

"Then I swear by the pledges…"

"Aschente!" they yelled in unison.

Stephanie Dola nodded, running through the possible scenarios. Sora could easily cold-read her, she was going to choose rock. He smirked. _What a foolish girl._ Stephanie Dola looked up to see Sora's expression, and gasped. Her thoughts changed directions, but the smirk never faded from Sora's face.

"Let's go," Sora said. Stephanie Dola raised her hand, a determined expression on her face.

"Rock, paper, scissors…"

"…shoot." Sora held his hand in a fist, while Stephanie held up two fingers.

"How..." Stephanie was speechless.

"You clearly put some thought into that, but not enough. You almost let me taunt you into playing rock, but when you saw my expression, you came to your senses and understood that if I played anything but paper, I couldn't win. You eliminated my chances of winning. That was good. Still, you should've picked paper."

"But… with scissors, I'd have twice as high a chance of winning as with paper!" Stephanie said.

"That's how I was able to predict you'd pick scissors!" he countered. "If you'd been able to figure out that I had figured all that out, you would've been able to play paper instead of scissors. That's why I said: you're not good enough." _More like humans aren't good enough_, Sora thought.

Stephanie collapsed, unable to comprehend.

"The game was going to end with me winning anyway. It was over from the start."

"You mean you were going after a tie, right? I understand. I can find you a place to stay."

"Nope," Sora said in a playful voice. "Shiro, what did I say?"

"You said 'In exchange, you can do me a small favor.'" Shiro recited from memory.

"And what did I say that would be?"

"You didn't say."

"Huh?!" Stephanie exclaimed. "W-Wait! That's not true! I checked! I asked if you wanted a place to stay!"

"Yup," Sora confirmed. "But did I respond?"

Sora watched Stephanie's expression change to horror as she recalled the event.

"In other words, the biggest trap in this game was the fact that you carried the same risk whether you lost or tied."

"But… that's fraud!"

"I obeyed all the pledges when I challenged you. It's your fault for not checking. I guess it's time to tell you what my _little favor_ is."

Stephanie looked at Sora's face in trepidation.

"You now belong to me." Sora stated. Somehow, a little part of his heart melted when he saw the look of admiration on Shiro's face. _Even if it was only for a second, I saw it!_

Sora chased the wailing Stephanie out of the room. "We're going to live in your- no _Shiro's and my_ palace, okay?"

"It's fraud!" she whined as Sora closed the door.

Before going back to bed, Sora added an item to his checklist.

**Gain Shiro's trust.**

* * *

><p>UPDATE: I'm working on a new chapter! So sorry for making you guys wait - it's been too long!<p> 


	5. 『Promise』

**『Promise』**

"It's really frilly," Shiro said, toying with the bright pink dress that Stephanie Dola had just forced her to wear after a long bath. "It's hard to move in."

Stephanie looked back at the girl. "I wore it when I was a kid. It fits you perfectly."

Just then, the door opened to reveal Sora wearing a butler's uniform. "It's a little formal, but it's like cosplay, so it's kinda fun." He had been waiting outside during their bath patiently, but when he saw Shiro, a small smile appeared on his face.

Stephanie was wearing a bedsheet dress Sora had made during the bath, looking ridiculous. She blushed furiously when Sora looked at her. "What are you looking at? This… this is just… I couldn't find anything else to wear!" She turned away and seemed to have an internal dialogue.

"What is she fighting?" Sora wondered with an amused expression.

Shiro watched the strange scene quietly. "Herself, I think."

Stephanie shrieked, evidently distressed, and ran out of the room. "I'll go make some tea!"

Sora turned to Shiro. "What's with her?"

"I'm not sure…"

Sora decided to get his curiosity out of the way. "May I ask you how you arrived here?"

A flash of exasperation appeared on her face, only fast enough for Sora to catch. "I received… an email." She paused, glancing at Sora for encouragement. He nodded, prompting her to go on. "It contained a link to a chess game online." She continued speaking, faster. "And so I played against the computer, except it didn't make moves like a normal computer."

She paused again, but this time she didn't look at Sora.

"Was it a draw?" Sora asked lightly.

Surprised, Shiro turned to look at Sora. Her wide eyes stared questioningly at Sora, the slightly amazed expression confirmed his beliefs. "I thought so," he half-exclaimed. "Shiro, you've never lost -or tied- before, right?"

Shiro affirmed with a reluctant nod.

The young girl was looking at something to her right, both out of interest and the need for a distraction from the question, and Sora followed her gaze to a well-worn book. This perked his interest as well.

To his surprise, the language was unfamiliar. "This isn't Japanese?" he said, mostly to himself. He opened the cover, ready to learn the language when he felt a tug on his shirt.

"Can I see it?" Shiro asked, not meeting his eyes.

Sora handed the book to Shiro, interested to see what she would do. It was miraculous. She silently scanned through the book, flipping back to pages where she saw familiar words or phrases and slowly noticing the patterns in grammar.

"That's… you're amazing. How many languages do you know?"

Shiro thought about this for a moment. "18 languages… including classical forms."

A corner of Sora's face lifted just slightly. _This girl is definitely special. _The duo moved to the back balcony as the lighting was convenient. Sora stared off into the distance with the wind blowing in his face, observing the foreign landscape. He hovered protectively over Shiro, who was deeply engrossed in the book.

Stephanie Dola returned just then, a tray of freshly baked cookies in her hands. "It's in Imanity," she said in reply to the bit of conversation she heard. "Elkia was once the biggest of the Imanity nations."

"What's Imanity?" asked Sora.

"The human race," said Stephanie.

"The human race?"

Stephanie continued, almost wistfully. "There used to be many Imanity countries, but they were already on the decline when my grandfather took power. Elkia was the only one left. We had to bet the country's territory if we wanted to expand."

"Which means you weren't betting against humans - I mean, Imanity."

"Of course."

Shiro looked up briefly from the book, but Sora showed no surprise, taking another cookie. "What is there besides humans?"

"Let me see…" Stephanie started arranging cookies in a four-by-four square. "There are sixteen sentient races in all to whom the ten pledges apply. We collectively call them the Exceed." Pointing to the first one, she continued. "Number one is the Old Deus, the gods who were defeated by the One True God. The Phantasma are number two. The Elementals are number three." Her finger moved to the third cookie in the second row. "The Elves, number seven, are good at magic, and made Elven Garde the largest nation on the planet. On the lower end, number fourteen are the Warbeasts, and number fifteen are the Sirens…"

"Wait, wait." Sora's thumb was flying across the screen. "What's this number one, number two stuff?"

"Their ranking. It's all determined by their affinity for magic, I've heard."

Sora stopped typing. "The Imanity aren't on that list?"  
>Stephanie's eyes shifted uncomfortably, reluctant to reply. She moved her finger slowly to the last cookie on the tray. "We're number sixteen."<p>

"The lowest, huh?"

"It can't be helped," Stephanie seemed defeated, simply acknowledging Imanity's fate. "We have zero affinity for magic."  
>"Zero?" Sora repeated, showing no disappointment. "So Imanity can't use magic?"<p>

"Indeed. Imanity lacks the Spirit Circuits that let them connect to the source magic. Not only can we not use it, we can't even tell if it's been used."

Sora thought back to the strange hooded girl in the tournament hall. _And that's why you can't win._ "If that's what you think, no wonder you keep losing."

Stephanie looked up, not quite sure what Sora just said.

"Steph, is there a library here?"

"There are books in the study… But…"

"They're in Imanity." Sora sighed, looking at the strange language. "I'll have to learn it."

"Yeah," said Stephanie, not quite sure how long that would take.

"Sora," said Shiro, slamming the book she had been intently reading for the past hour. "I learned it."

_An entirely foreign language in under an hour… _It was more than Sora had expected from the young girl. "That's amazing."

Shiro smiled, seeming to enjoy the praise.

"You're a little genius!" he exclaimed, adding to the praise.

"Wait, you learned it? You don't mean - you just learned an entire language?"

Shiro nodded.

Stephanie couldn't believe it. "That's impossible. In this short time?"

"It's simple because the spoken language is identical." Shiro stayed expressionless, as if this was an easy feat. "Maybe you're just slow."

Sora couldn't help it; he laughed. This little girl was a genius, the first to not lose to him and capable of learning an entire language.

"S-Simple?" Stephanie was shocked. Learning an entire language, only to call it "simple"?!

"Steph, why did you want to be king?" Sora asked, closing the cover of the book that he had just finished reading. "I stayed up all night reading, and I've learned a lot. About this kingdom, and about your grandfather."

Stephanie lowered her hands, which were holding a mug. "I see."

"Were you scared of losing your position in the royal family?" he said, taking a bit out of the cookies that he had grown fond of.

"No."

"You wanted to save Elkia?" he asked, not showing any skepticism.

"That's right. Of course, that was the biggest reason… But my grandfather was forced to gamble our country's territory, and he kept losing. He was called a foolish king." Stephanie gazed willfully at the portrait of her grandfather, a regal man with hair white with age. "But my grandfather believed in the potential of Imanity! Even if we're the lowest ranked, even if we can't use magic, he honestly believed we could beat the other races. I wanted to prove my grandfather was right. If I could take become king and take our territory back, I could prove my grandfather was right about what Imanity could do!" Tears rimmed her eyes as her bottled emotions came flowing out.

"Steph…" Shiro said, her eyes bright with curiosity. "Do you like this country, and this world?"

Stephanie hesitated just barely before answering. "Yes. Of course I do." She smiled, tears still in her eyes.

"That's nice."

Sora had a strange expression. "I'm really jealous you can say that with such certainty. But… That wish won't come true." He paused, judging Stephanie's expression. "To make things worse, on its current course, this country is doomed to fall. It's doomed the minute the next king takes over."

Footsteps echoed in the corridor, belonging to whom Sora, Shiro, and Stephanie were waiting for. A young woman walked past the corner, trailed by two older men. In their hands were a fancy dress and a newly polished crown, encrusted with sparkling jewels.

"K-Kurami…" Stephanie tried to hide her nervousness. "It's finally time for the coronation, isn't it?"

"Stephanie Dola." Kurami's voice was calm, in a taunting way. "Have you been dressed like that ever since I beat you? You said your wonderful grandfather gave this dress to you, correct?" In her hands was the fancy dress, which she had taken from one of the men. "You can have it back."

Stephanie raised her hand, cautiously reaching for her dress. Kurami dropped it, chuckling as it fell to the ground. Stephanie was wordless.

Kurami walked so that her face was beside Stephanie's ear. "Listen. You lost." She spoke unnervingly slowly, stretching out each word, mocking the girl. "Don't make the same mistake as the foolish king who gave you that dress."

Stephanie remained silent, but her emotions were clearly expressed on her face. Her mouth was in a thin line, fighting tears threatening to spill from her eyes. She bent down, hand stretching out once again to retrieve her dress.

"That's why people call you the granddaughter of a foolish king," Sora's voice rang out in the corridor. Stephanie's hand froze as she turned around in surprise and confusion. Kurami stopped in her tracks as well. "The game's already begun."

He smiled at Stephanie reassuringly as he picked up the dress. "Sora?" she asked, not understanding his seemingly compulsive actions.

He walked on. "Pledge six: Any bets made in accordance with the pledges must be upheld. This is yours." He smiled again, but this time, it was different. "For the moment."

"I see the granddaughter of a foolish king has foolish servants, too."

She took the dress and headed back, her eyes holding a challenge. Sora's eyes returned the challenge, not a hint of doubt contained in his bright irises.

"Hey, Shiro."

"Hm?"

It was a daring question, but he was reckless as ever. "Will you follow me?"

There was a silence, only the distant echoing of Kurami's footsteps in the air. She turned to face Sora, eyes shining, a small smile on her face.

He too, turned to face Shiro.

Shiro stared into Sora's eyes, contemplating, judging. "Why?"

"Does there need to be a reason?"

The young girl's smile grew wider than Sora had ever seen. Her small hand moved a strand of long hair behind her ear. She held out her pinky, and Sora, seeing it, did the same.

"Will you follow me?" Sora repeated his question, this time, softer.

When was the last time she had felt like this? People have shown her respect, acknowledging her genius as a prodigy. But this was different. In the real world, there was no need for her to make decisions, no need to take risks. Shiro closed her eyes, and grasped Sora's pinky with hers.

"I'll follow you anywhere."


End file.
